Birding The Front Range

Colorado's Front Range is one of the best birdwatching areas in North America. Within a span of 40 miles, elevations range from 5,000 to 14,000 feet, representing five distinct life zones. Birders can spend the morning watching grebes, pelicans and egrets in the South Platte Valley and, by afternoon, search for pipits and ptarmigan on the alpine tundra. This guide, designed primarily for beginning bird watchers and for those visiting our region, places emphasis on the natural habitats of the Front Range and on birding highlights that occur throughout the year. Chapter I describes the Front Range life zones while Chapter II guides birders through the seasons, ensuring exposure to a wide variety of species. Chapter III provides a checklist of Front Range birds, including a time and place for finding each species, and the book's Appendix lists regional conservation organizations that are working to protect our vital wildlife habitats. Book jacket.

Over 500 species of birds live in or visit Colorado and most can been seen along the Front Range.

"In this elegant narrative, celebrated naturalist Ted Floyd guides you through a year of becoming a better birder. Choosing 200 top avian species to teach key lessons, Floyd introduces a new, holistic approach to bird watching and shows how to use the tools of the 21st century to appreciate the natural world we inhabit together whether city, country or suburbs." -- From book jacket.

Collects photographs, range maps, and descriptive entries identifying the markings, habits, habitat, and voice of each species.

Covering thirty-five of the most difficult groups of birds, from winter loons to confusing fall warblers, jaegers to chickadees, accipiters to flycatchers, this clearly written and beautifully illustrated field guide tells exactly how to solve the most challenging bird identification problems of North America.

From prairies to peaktops, Colorado attracts an intriguing mix of birds, from Mountain Plovers to Rosy-Finches and Lazuli Buntings to Black Swifts. Birders from all over the country visit Colorado to see western and prairie specialties in scenic splendor. Birding Colorado lists likely birds at each site. A 15-page Appendix lists status and distribution of all the species recorded in the state. Take this book along as you visit treeless prairies in Pawnee National Grassland; cottonwood stream bottoms along the major rivers that rise in Colorado (North and South Platte, Republican, Arkansas, Rio Grande, San Juan, Colorado, and Yampa/Green); pinyon-clad mesas of southeastern and western Colorado; chasms, mesas, and mountains in four national parks (Black Canyon, Great Sand Dunes, Mesa Verde, and Rocky Mountain); marshes, ponds, and streams in four national wildlife refuges (Arapaho, Browns Park, Alamosa, and Monte Vista); incomparable mountain, mesa, and prairie highways and byways. Or simply use it for a day or two during a ski vacation, family outing, or urban visit.

Nearly everyone loves butterflies. We watch them because they're exquisitely beautiful, but they also have magical life cycles and intricate relationships among their host ecosystems. Are you overwhelmed by the array of possibilities in field guides that cover a broad geographic range? This user-friendly book focuses on 100 frequently seen species in the Colorado Front Range. Easily identify butterflies using over 120 striking color photos of individuals in their natural setting, and clear descriptions of both males and females. Each entry also includes that species habitat and life cycle, the caterpillar s host plants, and look-alike butterflies. The introduction includes tips on where to find butterflies, how to get close to them, and what we can do to attract them to our gardens and preserve their sensitive habitats.

From the renowned author of the New York Times best seller The Sibley Guide to Birds, a comprehensive, beautifully illustrated guide to identifying birds in the field. Sibley's Birding Basics is an essential companion for birders of all skill and experience levels. With Sibley as your guide, learn how to interpret what the feathers, the anatomical structure, the sounds of a bird tell you. When you know the clues that show you why there’s no such thing as, for example, “just a duck” birding will be more fun, and more meaningful. An essential addition to the Sibley shelf! The Sibley Guide to Birds and The Sibley Guide to Bird Life and Behavior are both universally acclaimed as the new standard source of species information. And now David Sibley, America’s premier birder and best-known bird artist, turns his attention to the general characteristics that influence the appearance of all birds, unlocking the clues to their identity. In 200 beautifully rendered illustrations and 16 essays, this scientifically precise volume distills the essence of Sibley’s own experience and skills, providing a solid introduction to “naming” the birds. Birding Basics reviews how one can get started as a birder—the equipment necessary, where and when to go birding, and perhaps most important, the essential things to look for when birds appear in the field—as well as the basic concepts of bird identification and the variations that can change the appearance of a bird over time or in different settings. Sibley also provides critical information on the aspects of avian life that differ from species to species: feathers (color, arrangement, shape, molt), behavior and habitat, and sounds.

A field guide that revolutionizes warbler identification Warblers are among the most challenging birds to identify. They exhibit an array of seasonal plumages and have distinctive yet oft-confused calls and songs. The Warbler Guide enables you to quickly identify any of the 56 species of warblers in the United States and Canada. This groundbreaking guide features more than 1,000 stunning color photos, extensive species accounts with multiple viewing angles, and an entirely new system of vocalization analysis that helps you distinguish songs and calls. The Warbler Guide revolutionizes birdwatching, making warbler identification easier than ever before. For more information, please see the author videos on the Princeton University Press website. Covers all 56 species of warblers in the United States and Canada Visual quick finders help you identify warblers from any angle Song and call finders make identification easy using a few simple questions Uses sonograms to teach a new system of song identification that makes it easier to understand and hear differences between similar species Detailed species accounts show multiple views with diagnostic points, direct comparisons of plumage and vocalizations with similar species, and complete aging and sexing descriptions New aids to identification include song mnemonics and icons for undertail pattern, color impression, habitat, and behavior Includes field exercises, flight shots, general identification strategies, and quizzes More information is available at www.TheWarblerGuide.com

Short listed for the Green Earth book award In early April, as Owen and his sister search the hickories, oaks, and dogwoods for returning birds, a huge group of birds leaves the misty mountain slopes of the Yucatan peninsula for the 600-mile flight across the Gulf of Mexico to their summer nesting grounds. One of them is a Cerulean warbler. He will lose more than half his body weight even if the journey goes well. Aloft over the vast ocean, the birds encourage each other with squeaky chirps that say, “We are still alive. We can do this.” Owen’s family watches televised reports of a great storm over the Gulf of Mexico, fearing what it may mean for migrating songbirds. In alternating spreads, we wait and hope with Owen, then struggle through the storm with the warbler. This moving story with its hopeful ending appeals to us to preserve the things we love. The backmatter includes a North American bird migration map, birding information for kids, and guidance for how native plantings can transform yards into bird and wildlife habitat.